Daijoubu Ja Nai
by Galaxy-Mitsuko-Pegasus
Summary: He knew that his time was short. It grew shorter with every shuddering breath he took. There was no way that he could give the elaborate speech that entered his mind every time he saw her. No. He didn't have the strength for that. He could barely even stay conscious as it was, but he had to tell her. Just for once. GinMado, rated T for blood and character death. I'MNOTSORRY!


**Gingka: What... Have you... Done...**

**Me: I'm not sorry! I'm not sorry! Okaymaybejustabitbutwhocares?! OTP FTW! And, as if that wasn't enough, FEELS! You guys may not believe me on this one, but this actually wasn't my idea. I used a prompt that I saw on Tumblr from the blog otpprompts. I just used the prompt to write this evil little thing. For those of you wondering, "Daijoubu Ja Nai" is Japanese for "I'm not okay."**

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Rain. It fell on skin that was already cooling well below a normal temperature. It soaked through fabric, causing clothing to hang limply around an equally limp body. This was it. This was the end. For once in his life, Gingka was mentally slapping himself for being so reckless. Normally, rushing headlong into a fight worked perfectly fine and he came out on top in the end. The World Championships, Spiral Force incident, even Nemesis. Despite the odds, he had always come out on top. But this battle… Was one he knew he could not win.

Gingka shivered, making a weak attempt at wrapping his jacket tighter around him, although he knew it was no use. The rain falling on his body seemed warmer than it should have. He turned his head to the side, allowing the blood that was pooling in his mouth to run out onto the ground. The movement made breathing slightly easier, at least.

A quiet ringing noise came from Gingka's pocket as it lit up. With a trembling hand, he reached back and pulled out his phone. Suddenly, he remembered that he could call 911. He could survive this. All it would take was pressing a few numbers and then giving his location and a request for help. But then again, Gingka never had been one for doctors, and going to the hospital for any length of time, whether it was necessary or not, had always seemed like a fate worse than death.

Gingka narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the words on his screen through his blurred vision.

"Madoka…" he breathed. Suddenly, he knew. He knew that, even if he were to call an ambulance, it likely would not arrive in time to save him. So why bother trying? Instead, he may as well finally, with what was undoubtedly going to be his final moments, tell Madoka the truth, what he really thought about her. But he'd have to hurry. Breathing was becoming increasingly difficult as he lost more and more blood. With one swipe of his finger across the screen, he had sealed his fate.

"Gingka! I suppose you got my text message then?"

"Yeah. Thought I'd call you rather than replying by text." Gingka said, smiling slightly as he forced himself to sound calm, at least, so that Madoka wouldn't be suspicious.

"So, are you coming back to the B-Pit tonight for dinner then? Zero and the others were wondering."

"Sorry, but I'm not going to make it back tonight." Gingka sighed, almost giving himself away as his voice nearly cracked.

"Because of the storm…?" Madoka sounded disappointed.

"Y-yeah… Something like that." Gingka muttered, turning his head away from the phone for a moment to cough more blood out of his airway.

"Please don't tell me you caught a cold." Madoka sweatdropped as she heard the cough even through the rain. "And are you still outside?!"

"Uhh… Maybe?" Gingka tried his best to brush it off.

"You'd better get to shelter right this instant, mister." Madoka frowned, putting one hand on her hip as she spoke.

"I'm under a tree. I'll be fine, don't worry about me." Gingka said, smiling sadly at Madoka's usual stern tone.

"You know I meant a building, right?" Madoka sighed.

"Sorry, no building exactly within sight." Gingka chuckled. This much, at least, was true, as he had closed his eyes tightly to ward off the dizzy feeling that was beginning to overtake him.

Madoka sighed. "Gingka…"

"I'm fine. Don't worry abo-" Gingka was cut off as his airway again filled with blood, forcing him to again expel it.

"You. Building. Now." Madoka said. "I won't take no for an answer."

"Not exactly like I planned on disobeying you." Gingka muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Gingka used his now-bloodstained scarf to partially shield his phone from the rain so that it would be harder to hear.

Madoka sighed. "So if you're not going to be back tonight, then when will you be back?"

"No clue." Gingka sighed, although in his mind he knew the answer.

"I'm even making burgers." Madoka sighed.

"Well then, I suppose you'll have to save some." Gingka chuckled after a moment, suddenly finding that he almost couldn't form a coherent sentence in his brain.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I was just concentrating on, uh, not getting hit by a car." Gingka replied with the first thing that came to mind.

"Well, better not get hit. Can't have the strongest blader in the world dying suddenly like that." Madoka chuckled.

"Y-yeah." Gingka coughed again, then groaned.

"Gingka?" Madoka sounded suspicious.

"I'm fine. Just remembered that this wasn't the way I meant to go." Gingka made another excuse, even though he knew he should tell her the truth.

"Oh, okay."

No, he couldn't tell her what was really happening. Even if she didn't feel the same way he did, she still cared, and letting her know that he was dying would definitely cause her to panic. Then again, she'd freak out when she found out he was dead, but… Perhaps she never would.

"What are the others doing?" Gingka decided to let Madoka do the talking.

"Well, Zero and Shinobu are trying to play Twister with Maru, although they've both fallen and had to restart about five times. Maru's just sitting there laughing at them because apparently Shinobu managed to get his arm through Zero's jacket and now he can't get it out without tickling Zero."

Gingka chuckled at the image that formed in his mind. "What… About Ren…?"

"Well, I think she's… Hang on, I've gotta go to another room to tell you this." Madoka chuckled, walking out of the room. Zero and the others raised an eyebrow at the brunette.

"She'd better tell him she likes him soon or he's gonna leave again. He said so himself, that he was considering going on another training journey now that things have settled down here." Shinobu said.

Zero nodded. "But he promised to take me with him if he does leave."

"What?! No fair!"

"I think Ren's upstairs trying to write a love note to Zero." Madoka said once she was out of earshot.

"Oh?" Gingka said.

"Nobody can deny that they'd make a cute couple." Madoka chuckled.

"Mmhmm." Gingka suddenly noticed, with no small amount of alarm, that he could barely see at all, even with his eyes open. Granted, the sun had nearly completely set by this time, but there should have been enough light from nearby street lamps for him to see. The redhead forced down the panic that rose in his throat.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Just tired." Gingka muttered. This much, at least, was true. His eyelids were beginning to feel heavy, which was the only indication he now had that they were even opened. He was half-regretting having not called 911 instead now, but he wasn't about to hang up on Madoka to do so. Plus, they probably wouldn't be in time to save him anyway. So he laid there, quietly expelling the blood that pooled in his mouth and throat, and listened to Madoka's voice.

"I swear, if those idiots ate all of the potato chips again, I'm going to make them buy their own next time." Madoka muttered.

"That.. Was me…" Gingka admitted slowly, his speech now becoming slightly slurred, a fact that did not entirely escape Madoka's sharp hearing.

"Are you absolutely sure you're alright?"

"Kinda cold…" Gingka shivered, finally squeezing his eyes shut.

"You need to get inside soon or you'll catch a bad cold." Madoka's tone was now serious.

"That's not exactly the worst of my worries at the moment." Gingka muttered.

"What do you mean?" Madoka sounded worried.

Gingka froze, his fogged brain trying frantically to come up with an excuse. "Well… I'm sorta… Busy… With... something… That's…. important…"

"Something important?" Madoka now sounded curious.

"Y-yeah… Umm…" Tons of things flooded Gingka's brain at once, things he had never said but had wanted to. Compliments, stupid jokes, tales of his travels, all entered his brain at once. He knew that his time was short. It grew shorter with every shuddering breath he took. There was no way that he could give the elaborate speech that entered his mind every time he saw her. No. He didn't have the strength for that. He could barely even stay conscious as it was, but he had to tell her. Just for once.

"Gingka? You still there?"

"Mhmm…"

"You're not okay, are you?" Madoka challenged.

Gingka hesitated for only a second before the emotions he had been forcing back overwhelmed him.

"N-no…" he said, whimpering. The sound nearly broke Madoka's heart.

"Where are you?! I'm coming to pick you up, right now."

"N-no… T-too late…" Gingka gasped in pain. He couldn't let her come. Not now, not where he was. If she came, she would undoubtedly fall where he had fallen, and he couldn't let her do that.

"T-too late?! Gingka, what do you mean?!" Madoka sounded frightened.

Gingka knew he was going to have to be quick. He knew that he was slipping. Madoka had to know before he was gone.

"M-Mado...ka…"

"Y-yes…?"

"I-I love you…. A-and… I'm… sorry…"

Madoka brought a hand to her mouth. "I love you too, Gingka… Please… Just hang in there. Whatever's going on, hang in there… I'm coming. Please…"

"Don't… Danger…"

"Then I'm sending the police. Where are you?"

"Con...stru...ction… W-ware...house… Dock..." Gingka forced himself to hang on, just for a moment. But he was already slipping away.

"Okay. Okay, hang on. It'll be okay." Madoka said, rushing to the front to grab her keys. The group of younger bladers playing board games looked up in alarm at the brunette's pale face.

"Maru, call the police and have them go to the warehouse being constructed near the docks. Hurry." Madoka said before turning her attention back to the phone. "It'll be okay Gingka. Just hang on. The police are coming."

Zero and the others leapt to their feet in alarm, fear showing on their faces.

"T-to la..te…" Gingka's voice was barely audible.

"No, no no! Don't you dare! Gingka Hagane, I swear if you die on me now you will get the rant of your life when I catch up!"

"S-so...rry…"

"Please…" Madoka whimpered, dropping to her knees and burying her face in one hand, while the other held her phone.

"M-Ma...do…"

Madoka held her breath, but Gingka never finished saying her name. Instead, she heard a splashing noise before the call was cut off.

"No…" Madoka let out a barely audible whimper and curled into a ball on the floor. The rest of the group stood frozen, unable to move as their brains processed the information they had just been given. It was small, but they knew that something was wrong. It was not at all like Madoka to suddenly switch moods like that and panic, much less yell into the phone at Gingka. Even more unusual were the words she had spoken, the actions of the last few moments of time.

"The police are on their way." Maru muttered quietly, breaking the silence for an instant. After the young girl's voice had quieted, the only noise left in the room was Madoka's sobbing and barely audible pleading.

"Please… Please no… Please be okay… You have to…"

Ren came down the stairs, her note to Zero forgotten after she had heard Madoka's outburst. Just as Ren's foot touched the ground floor, Zero fell to his knees in shock. Ren went to him automatically, sitting next to him and putting her arms around him in a comforting manner. Zero moved almost robotically, turning and burying his face in Ren's shoulder. The blonde rested her cheek atop his head, sniffling as the dam broke. Soon enough, her shoulder was soaked with tears. Moments later, the rest of the group also began crying.

After about ten minutes, Madoka stood, swiping away her tears and putting on her jacket before heading for the front door.

"Where are you going?" Maru asked quietly.

"I have to go to him." Madoka said, sniffling before heading out the door into the dark, rainy night.

In perfect unison, the rest of the group followed Madoka. They ran. They ran hard and fast towards the area that Maru had sent the police to. Within minutes, they could see the flashing lights of the police cars, as well as the spotlight of a helicopter shining down.

"Let me through! Please!" Madoka exclaimed as the police tried to hold her back.

"Let her through. Ma'am, please be careful. It is very slippery here." one officer, clearly the one in charge, said.

"Where is he?! Please tell me he's okay." Madoka sobbed.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am." the officer sighed, carefully leading her over to the edge of what turned out to be a deep, large hole in the ground. Madoka could see, merely a few feet away, signs of someone having slipped and fallen right at the edge. Trembling, she looked down, only to let out a sharp cry of anguish at what she saw.

Zero and the others, not to be held back at the sound that came from Madoka's lips, rushed over as a single unit. Eyes dulled in sorrow at the scene below them. Gingka was laying on his stomach on the ground, one arm above his head, his phone laying near his hand. A broken, jagged-edged piece of steel pipe was sticking out of his back.

"We can only assume that he slipped in and fell, unfortunately landing like that. I'm sorry." the officer said quietly.

"B-but… He has to be alive… Please…" Madoka whispered. The younger bladers, having seen all they needed to, sorrowfully walked away.

"I'm sorry Ma'am… He was dead when we arrived." the officer said. "If there's anything I can do, just let me know."

Madoka didn't respond, merely dropping to her knees in the mud.

The next morning, newspaper headlines around the world carried the same message:

Gingka Hagane Dead in Construction Site Accident.

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**Gingka: Why do you even do this to me?!**

**Me: -laughing evilly and crying at the same time- I don't even know! I don't even know! -Okaysoit'sforthereactionsinreviewsandforthefunofitbutstill-**

**Gingka: -_- I hate you.**

**Me: No ya don't! Now go sit in the emo corner and mope I've got other things to do. -cough- EotS chapter-cough- Anyway, Galaxy out! And if you want to see the prompt I used for this, here it is: **

_"Person B knows they're undoubtedly about to die within the next few seconds, likely from the gaping wound they're bleeding out from. Instead of calling for help, they phone Person A and carry on a casual conversation as if nothing is wrong, making sure to mention how much they love them before their time runs out."_


End file.
